Unmasking Anxiety: What We Wish People Understood

In this episode, we open up about anxiety, and share the tools and strategies we use to overcome it.

We also dive into some of Carol's creative projects, including a poem about a wealthy man disguising himself as a poor man, and Gila updates her previous Finch App review - it's now a thumbs down. Don’t miss this thoughtful and inspiring conversation!

Project Managers: Andrea Rai & Phil Powell.

Editor: Phil Powell

Project Managers: Andrea Rai & Phil Powell
Editor: Phil Powell

Huge thanks to the National Lottery Reaching Communities Fund for supporting our Dis-labled podcast. Learn more about their amazing work: https://www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk

All enquiries: podcast@communityfocus.co.uk
Website: https://www.communityfocus.co.uk/

Theme Music: Rastko Rasic & the students of Community FocusOther Music: Jazzy Frenchy by ⁠⁠⁠Benjamin Tissot

Transcript

SPEAKER_17 0:07

Community focused. Community focused. We're here for you. With me and you.

SPEAKER_00 0:16

Oscar Our point of you.

SPEAKER_02 0:22

At five o'clock. Yes, but weekend with you.

SPEAKER_13 0:30

We're here for you. Yes. All the point of view. Our point of view.

SPEAKER_05 0:39

Hooray.

unknown 0:42

Hooray!

Gila 0:52

Community Focus is an art centre for children and adults with disabilities. We are based in Fabara Burnett, North London, and offer a collection of creative and well-being activities for all ages.

Jonathan 1:15

Jonathan.

Gila 1:18

Carol Amelia.

Havva 1:23

Hava and bye back.

Jonathan 1:32

In this episode we dive into some of Carol's creative projects, including a captivating poem about a wealthy man disguising himself as a poor man. We also open up about anxiety and share the tools and strategies we use to overcome it. Don't miss this thoughtful and inspiring conversation.

SPEAKER_14 1:54

So everyone, how's your week been? Phil, tell us all about it!

Phillip R 1:59

Well, I've got some very good news for you. My dear Karen and I are going to get engaged next year on her birthday. I just love that lady so much, you know. She's and we're doing it on her birthday on the 8th of July. I am so happy that I've got my my woman, you know. I saw her on Tuesday. I've gonna see uh I've seen her on Saturday as well. And she comes down to see me for spending some time with me on on Sun on Saturday, you know.

SPEAKER_04 2:56

I think that deserves a round of applause, don't you? Maybe congratulations to Phil and Karen. Yeah. Have you got anything else you want to tell us about what you've been up to this week, Phil?

Phillip R 3:08

Right, um, I went out on Wednesday night Wednesday. My friend Jason came around to see me. See me and um he really looked after me, he did, you know. Yeah, it's very good for me, like my my friend Jason. Hello, what have you been doing this week?

Havva 3:24

Well I was doing this week, um I was doing something with my body.

SPEAKER_11 3:30

Who's my body?

Havva 3:32

My cat, my cat. My cat, my cat. Um I was doing s another song. Um Another song.

SPEAKER_04 3:42

Another song, yeah. What's this song? Sing us this new song that you've made up.

Havva 3:47

I wish I had a star I wish I had someone might have an eye on the star tonight on the wishing star it was silver and gold and wonderful days. I wish I had another one to bring a friend to me. That is good. Well, we what was you doing this weekend?

SPEAKER_11 4:38

It was Multi Culture Week in in college this week, so we made some flags. And so we made some flags to go around the college. Oh made some flags and made some and we had a we had uh a special person to come in and talk about an author, an author talk about the British Empire. That's it really. I mean, what have we been doing this week?

SPEAKER_04 5:06

I went to bowling the M Cap Lido. They're playing the game with my friends bow bowling. What did you do with weekend in Jolenton?

Jonathan 5:20

Uh I haven't been up too much, I although I did do the um bowling with you on Wednesday as well. So yeah, that was a thing we both did. But aside from that, wasn't too much really, not much to report.

SPEAKER_14 5:35

No claw.

Jonathan 5:37

Uh well I did, but there's not much to say really, you know. Just anyway.

SPEAKER_15 5:45

Was it a specific meeting week?

Jonathan 5:49

Uh yes. Um I can't actually remember the name of it. It it was it was actually after our last podcast. I think so. It was a week ago.

SPEAKER_07 6:01

Friday evening.

Jonathan 6:03

Yeah. Yeah. It was that it was actually uh bowling as well. Yeah, bowling at the same place. So yeah. So Carol, what have you been up to this week?

Carol 6:16

So recently at college I've been making a sculpture and the design has to be based on a hat that I'm doing. And then next steps we're going to make our designs into like we're gonna make it from like wire and we're actually so yeah. At the start, because like our project is the whole topic on hats, they they just asked us to make random like like objects made out of like different materials. So I got a bunch of materials and I just made them into a random shape. And then I decided to like because they asked me what it looked like and I said it looked like a tree. And then I made like a big sculpture and I made it into a tree and I painted it all. And now I'm drawing the design and then I'm gonna uh w how do you name it? Artitect. Architecture. I'm gonna use wire from the architecture room to make it into a hat. So yeah.

SPEAKER_14 7:30

But also Carol spent Saturday with me and we did uh monologues and uh stories.

Carol 7:49

So we were like writing ideas for um different uh different like we were writing ideas for the podcast and they told us to describe like get an object and try and like make a character that matches the object. So I got these old sandals and I made it from um and I wrote it about a wise old man who who's like his name's Henry, he lives a wealthy life. So one day he bec he uh decides to become um he pretends to be homeless and um but secretly he's a billionaire. So the real like truth behind it, he wants to um like the test people in the street how they'll treat him compared treat him from being uh homeless compared to being a billionaire and see if anything changes.

Phillip R 9:07

What do we do to stop ourselves from feeling nervous and anxious?

Carol 9:13

Uh normally when I feel anxious, um I normally like pace a lot and like if I'm trying to speak I get nervous when I'm talking, so I just like go quiet and my words kinda like get mixed up. So yeah.

Phillip R 9:34

What do you what make what do you do to make you make yourself feel better?

Carol 9:40

Um I normally listen to music or draw, sometimes that helps me. Sometimes I would go for someone go to someone for advice and see their opinions and then I'd think about it and decide what I wanna do. Yeah. What do you do when you're anxious and how do you deal with it to fix it?

Jonathan 10:09

When I am anxious, I will I will end up stuttering and stammering my throat will get very dry and my breathing can be a bit laboured sometimes. Uh yeah, it's all all sorts of things. It shows a lot when I'm anxious. What I usually do to fix my or at least help it a little bit was is I will do things such as retreat within my own mind, and in some cases I'll simply need to go somewhere to be alone. And if I've been feeling nervous and anxious for a while and not been able to do anything to help it, my body will just sort of force some help onto it, and I'll end up crying annoyingly. But yeah, it's sort of a pressure valve sort of thing, you know. Yeah, music also helps. Uh unfortunately nervousness and anxiety, like with a lot of people, can be social based, and if you start listening to music or retreating within your own mind, or going somewhere to be alone, or especially crying, it can leave an impact on what other people think of you. And what other people think of you when those things happen is rarely positive. And so Yeah, it makes socializing difficult when your coping mechanisms don't exactly help you out socially.

Phillip R 11:54

You know, talking to in this group, in this group, does it help you?

Jonathan 12:00

Yes, it helps. Yeah, it it uh I can get it off my chest a bit, yeah.

Phillip R 12:16

When you get nervous and anxious, what do you do?

SPEAKER_12 12:19

I just stay calm. That's what do I say, I just stay calm. What do you do to calm yourself down? Oh, just talking to the teachers. They're calming down and say, everything's gonna be fine. Don't be nervous, distress up, that's it. I just watch TV and that's it.

SPEAKER_11 12:41

What do you mean? They're nervous. Oh, I eat chocolate and also go to the p park if I feel anxious about something. I go to the park and I take a chocolate bar and calm myself down. I have about three or two chocolate bars in my pocket the last time. This plain white chocolate. Plain chocolate. Yes. Why do you check it make you hap happy? It makes me feel very happy and excited then afterwards. What do you do when you're feeling anxious?

Havva 13:17

When I feel anxious, I talk to my cat and I've got problems because I sometimes I get nervous and he comes very strong, nervous, and my hand starts shaking. And I get panic. And I lose something, I get panic. I talk to my cat and it calms me down.

SPEAKER_04 13:40

What does the cat say to you when you go to meow, girls meow.

Phillip R 13:45

Gosh meow. Do you talk to anyone that calms you down?

Havva 13:50

Not only my cat. I talk to my cat. My cat hasn't talked, she doesn't speak. She understands.

Phillip R 13:58

Hang on, I need to ask you something. Why don't you speak to speak to people? Why don't you speak to a counselor or anything?

Havva 14:07

I'm alright, sometimes I'm alright. I'm alright. Sometimes I talk to the doctor and she doesn't tell my mum. She keeps it secret. That's why I told her not to tell them not to worry to my mum. I don't want to worry my mum and my dad. I can't talk about then I talk to my cat. Because she can't speak. I keep quiet.

Phillip R 14:33

I'm just gonna use an advice. You gotta talk to people. Not just keep it in your seat. Keep it inside you. You've got to keep it you gotta talk to people and let it out. All of us, you know? All of us we'll listen to you, you know.

Havva 14:48

Okay, alright. Okay, thank you, Phil. We all like you, yeah. Thank you.

SPEAKER_07 14:54

Yeah, yeah. Okay.

Phillip R 14:55

Don't keep it inside yourself. That's what I do, that's what I do. Because it it make it make you make make yourself worse. What do you do, Phil?

Havva 15:02

When you get scared of that?

Phillip R 15:05

I talk to my carers, you know, I talk to people, you know. Talk to people. 'Cause they're there for you to help you with things and support you as well, yeah.

SPEAKER_07 15:15

Alright.

Phillip R 15:17

So I I'll give you some advice. Oh you don't keep it inside yourself, just let it oil out, you know.

Havva 15:23

Let it out, okay.

Phillip R 15:25

Another thing I do is get an iPad. I use my I've got two iPads. And they've they've been a great helpful as well. They've been a great help playing games and everything, you know?

SPEAKER_07 15:36

You get a showing noise unhumbling noise.

SPEAKER_04 16:26

Phil, where were we, Phil? Where were we filled?

Phillip R 16:29

Oh well, some guys um iPad iPads. Why don't you get why don't you get someone to get you an iPad? Calm you down.

Havva 16:38

Okay.

Phillip R 16:38

Listen to music, play music, what your favourite music is. Play games, you know. Yeah.

Havva 16:44

I'm alright, I'm alright.

Phillip R 16:46

Are you sure?

Havva 16:46

I'm all fine, I'm all fine playing, I'll play. I'm alright.

Phillip R 16:50

So everybody, if you're feeling anxious, just talk to people and don't keep it inside you. You've got to let it all out. We are family. Me.

Havva 17:02

We are the family. We got brother sisters, we got each other, we are the family.

SPEAKER_12 17:26

Describe yourself in three words. What colour? What animal? And what fruit? However, you can go first.

Havva 17:34

Um orange, cat, and apple.

SPEAKER_12 17:39

Why did you choose those?

Havva 17:41

Because I'm a fruit and a cat and the and the apple. I'm a fruit and a cat and an apple. I'm an apple tree. Phil, what is your what is your fruit colour?

Phillip R 18:02

My colour is red, my fruit is melon, and my animal is a peacock. Why did you choose those? Because red is for Arsenal.

SPEAKER_07 18:18

Yeah.

Phillip R 18:20

My favourite bird is a peacock, apart from Karen. And and and my and my favourite fruit is a watermelon. Jonathan, describe yourself. What's what's your favourite fruit? What fruit would you be?

SPEAKER_14 18:36

If you were a fruit, what would you be?

Phillip R 18:38

Well if you're a fruit, what would you be? Oh my god. Jonathan, I'm being serious now. Now behave. Yeah, great serious questions, yeah. Yes. Really groundbreaking stuff.

Carol 19:00

You could be a neutral or something.

Phillip R 19:06

Jonathan, describe yourself.

Jonathan 19:12

For colour I would have to pick turquoise. And for animal I would pick scorpion. And for the fruit, I would pick a tomato. And why did you choose those, Jonathan? I'm not sure. I just like those things. Really. You know, simple. So Carol, what most what best represents you in terms of fruit, uh animal, and colour?

Carol 19:38

I chose my free because I like the colour blue and I think it's a nice colour. And I like dogs because they're playful and friendly, and I just love being around them. And I chose the tomato because I like them in general. Andrea, what do you use to describe yourself in colour animal and uh fruits?

SPEAKER_15 20:03

Well, I describe myself as a lion because it's got big hair like me. Um green is my nice colour because my favourite film is with a device of Animal City. And it's strawberry because I like the smell. I like all the seeds because they're all mates together.

SPEAKER_12 20:23

Do you like any any pets? I don't like po puppies or fish.

Carol 20:28

Do I like any puppies or fish? Um I'd say I I I like puppies and I like dogs, but I wouldn't I wouldn't say like fit maybe I had a fish puppy.

SPEAKER_12 20:46

No, I didn't say I'm saying does she like all the animals? Does she like does she like playing with the animals or talking to the animals or do you like playing with animals or talking to animals?

Carol 20:58

I feel like that's like the same thing. If you play with an animal, you talk to them as well, right? Kind of.

SPEAKER_04 21:05

I guess so. Does that answer a question?

SPEAKER_07 21:08

No.

SPEAKER_04 21:09

No.

Gila 21:24

A few weeks ago I gave a review on a app called Finch. Um, but recently I've uninstalled it because it gives me so much anxiety about um like logging everything in the app in an hour or doing things in specific ways. Things were supposed to be there to help with anxiety, but for Me it didn't. I don't know if it's how I perceive the app, but it did not work for me. So I'm sorry if it didn't help anyone, but keep on going at it. I tried so m I tried so so much with the app, it didn't work. I hope you get on with it, but it's really it function for me. I'm still searching for some apps that can help me. I may found one called E Research, but I'm not sure about it. Maybe colouring or something like I install a lot of apps on my phone, maybe something or game, something called line pulley, which is basically you need to follow the line. Um it gives numbers, then you need to follow the line to the numbers. It's a fun game, but it's w it's whatever the listeners taste. So what's the space for more apps that I've come up with hopes are on you The weather's gonna be dry, wet, rain and snow and a bit windy and sunny.

Havva 23:52

All mixed up. What should we wear? We have to wear um clothes, you know. Warm clothes, too much clothes. Or it can be, you know, it can be windy and cold and rain and thunder.

SPEAKER_07 24:08

Boom boom Boom boom boom boom.

Carol 24:26

And now it's time for poemer. This poem is called Change. It's about a wealthy man who is tired of living a rich life, so he decides to do a social experiment where he goes on the streets and he dresses as a homeless person and he tests the people on the streets to see how they'll treat him compared to being a rich man. Life is always the same. People play it like a game, rushing around, trying to figure it all out, but I'm stuck in the middle, trying to find a better version of myself. I'm tired of living a wealthy life. People use your money and abuse you out of your own despite. People control me like a puppet, only seeing me as a Muppet. So I decided to change, becoming a person of a new name. People looked at me like I was insane. I walked down the street, feeling the eyes of my poorly dressed disguise. Stares became glares, but I didn't care. I once felt low in my miserable house. Now I know the truth in this unspoken world. We all know the lies of this unwelcoming surprise. The walls kept it hidden. Now my inner peace is released. I feel a surge of new energy, finally freed to be someone I meant to be.

Phillip R 25:53

Did you write that poem or did you did you read it from a book?

Carol 25:59

I wrote the poem. Um took some time, but it was worth doing in the end.

Phillip R 26:06

What made you want to write that po a bet that poem?

Carol 26:11

So in the project, it was based on a picture that they gave us, and we had to imagine a character and make up one. So I I was given some old sandals and I thought of a wise man who like and then it turned into a story where he was wealthy, but he wanted to see how people would treat him in public for a social experiment, and he so he pretended to be homeless.

SPEAKER_15 26:48

Do you think a lot of people have done that before? Do you think it's quite true?

Carol 26:56

Like in this world we don't know about people's lives. Everyone has a different life, and someone could be like really like someone could be wealthy and they could just live a simple life, and they could be like just wearing normal clothes. So like it's always good to not it's always good to not judge a book by its cover, so we don't know how people live their lives.

Phillip R 27:31

Final thoughts. The final thought is if you're bored, just watching quizzes. If you're bored, watch a movie.

Carol 27:41

If you're bored, put your feet up on the couch and listen to ASM.

Gila 27:51

Can we do some a shama? Yes.

Jonathan 27:55

What's that?

unknown 27:55

Oh my god.

Jonathan 27:56

What camo do Never be ashamed to be who you truly are. Oh give yourselves a clap, everybody.

SPEAKER_17 28:05

Very good. Very good. Community focused. Community focused. We're here for you.

SPEAKER_00 28:21

With me and you all the out of you.

SPEAKER_02 28:30

At five talk. Yes, but we can review.

SPEAKER_13 28:39

We're here for you. Yes. Our fuck you.

SPEAKER_05 28:47

Hooray.

unknown 28:50

Hooray.